Notifications & Messages

Hey - It’s time to join the thousands of other dealer professionals on DrivingSales. Create an account so you can get full access to the articles, discussions and people that are shaping the future of the automotive industry.

Warning: Robotic Inventory Videos Devalue Your YouTube Channel's SEO

Dealers frequently query me about the value of producing premium (e.g., custom) video content for their inventory videos on YouTube. The common refrain goes something like this: 'Why should I invest in high-quality inventory videos for SEO? My inexpensive (robotic / stitched) videos get the job done, don't they?"

Well here is the bad news: From some tests I and others have run, it is relatively certain that YouTube algorithmically rates channels based on the cumulative and average “quality” of the content uploaded. Practically speaking, if your videos have all been very popular, your channel and new uploads will tend to rank very well. Conversely, if your channel has lots and lots of videos on it, few of which get much traction (I call this "spray and pray" video marketing), then the SEO consequence is negative.

Therefore, adding a whole bank of robotic videos (most of which probably won't do very well) can serve to dramatically devalue your channel and SEO.

It's simple: As with most things, with video SEO you get what you pay for.

Thanks for the post Joe. I was just discussing this topic with someone in our store who thought I should push out stitched videos to YouTube just to increase quantity. As with anything, quality always rules!!